Psalm 136

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
His love endures forever.

Give thanks to the God of gods.
His love endures forever.

Give thanks to the Lord of lords:
His love endures forever.

to him who alone does great wonders,
His love endures forever.

who by his understanding made the heavens,
His love endures forever.

who spread out the earth upon the waters,
His love endures forever.

who made the great lights—
His love endures forever.

the sun to govern the day,
His love endures forever.

the moon and stars to govern the night;
His love endures forever.

to him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt
His love endures forever.

and brought Israel out from among them
His love endures forever.

with a mighty hand and outstretched arm;
His love endures forever.

to him who divided the Red Sea asunder
His love endures forever.

and brought Israel through the midst of it,
His love endures forever.

but swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea;
His love endures forever.

to him who led his people through the wilderness;
His love endures forever.

to him who struck down great kings,
His love endures forever.

and killed mighty kings—
His love endures forever.

Shion king of the Amorites
His love endures forever.

and Og king of Bashan—
His love endures forever.

and gave their land as an inheritance,
His love endures forever.

an inheritance to his servant Israel.
His love endures forever.

He remembered us in our low estate
His love endures forever.

and freed us from our enemies.
His love endures forever.

He gives food to every creature.
His love endures forever.

Internal Error

This "Internal Error" message appeared on my computer this evening. Although I was a bit aggravated and confused, it occurs to me that it is also quite a convenience. 

What if my computer were to continue on without such a message? Chances are the "error" would continue on internally until in infected and affected many of the other programs on my computer and eventually ruined the hard drive and the entire computer.  

All of this made me think; what if we each had a message, such as this, that appeared when we had an "internal error" in our lives? 

When an internal error was made known to us we would then have the option to continue on and, perhaps, behave in unexpected ways or restart to avoid these side effects. Or, we we would have the chance to fix the error for the future. 

If  not addressed, the errors that occur internally in our lives will infect and affect many of the other areas of our lives. And, over time, these internal errors become eternal errors that are irreversible. 

What "Internal Errors" are you facing at the moment that need to be addressed?

What steps do you need to take immediately to restart and fix the error for the future?

Leaving and Cleaving

There are two principles in marriage that I talk about to couples before their wedding day and before they are married; “leaving” and “cleaving”

In the book of Genesis, God tells Adam and Eve – the first husband and wife – God says; “a man will leave his father and mother and be united with his wife.” A husband is called to leave his old life – all of the things in which he used to find comfort and security in – to leave them behind.  A husband is called to be united with his wife – to cleave to her in the highs and lows of life, in richer and in poorer, in sickness and in health. Out of pure love and devotion, in faithfulness and commitment

In your relationship with Jesus Christ, which do you struggle with more – leaving or cleaving?

LEAVING: Do you struggle to leave behind the sin of your past? To leave behind the things in which you used to find comfort and security in? To leave behind the things that you have grown to love?

Some have really worked at leaving their sins and their sinful life behind. They have focused on these sins and said – never again! They have waged a war on these sins in your life. And, then they find that it hasn’t worked, and somehow this sin has grown even larger.

The only way to combat sin is to fall in love with something else!

Many struggle to leave behind the sin of your past because they also struggle to cleave to Jesus.

CLEAVING: Do you struggle to stay united with Jesus? To stick with Him through the highs and lows of life? To trust Him in richer and in poorer? To depend upon Him sickness and in health?

Some believers they know about Jesus but they don’t know Jesus. Some “followers” have no idea what they are following. Some Christians don’t even enjoy being with Christ.

There is so much more to a life in Jesus Christ than salvation. We are invited to follow Jesus out of pure love and devotion. We are urged to live in Jesus, being faithful and committed.

God's Universe

I heard this quote from J. Vernon McGee the other day and I love it.

"This is God’s universe and he does things his way. Now, you may have a better way of doing things, but you don’t have a universe."

Live In Jesus Christ

My wife and I will celebrate our 10 year wedding anniversary in May. Never, in the course of these 10 years have I thought of cheating on her or being unfaithful to her. Never have I even been tempted to break that commitment that I have made to her in the presence of God and our families. 

And although this is something that I recognize as a wonderful thing, it is not something that I speak of often or that I boast about with great pride. Why? Because being faithful to my wife is an expectation of me as her husband. 

And, strikes me that many Christians consider unfaithfulness to our spouse as an unthinkable act. But, so often, we live as though our commitment to Jesus Christ isn’t as important as our commitment to our spouse.

In Colossians 2:6-7, the Apostle Paul writes this;

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in Him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

To be saved means that we have received salvation - that we have been rescued from harm, danger or loss and that we have been redeemed from the consequences of sin. To be saved means that we have received Jesus Christ - Jesus is the only one that has the power to redeem us from the consequences of sin.

We claim our salvation in Jesus Christ with great pride – and we should. But, you see, salvation is only the beginning.

A lot of people have received salvation and they have received Jesus Christ. But for so many this seems to be the stopping point. A lot of people are redeemed from the consequences of sin and then they continue to live a life of sin.

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in Him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

A great example of living a life in Jesus Christ - being rooted and grounded in Him - is marriage. Marriage is more than wearing a wedding ring – it is a relationship. It takes on its meaning by the daily choices we make and the ways we respond to the pressures around us.

The Apostle Paul is urging The Church to stay grounded in our relationship with Jesus; established in faith. He is writing to people who have already received Jesus and are striving to live a life in Him. He is writing to people are struggling with the challenge of living out this relationship, in a world where Satan is attacking. Many of us, as Christians, we struggle in the same way - and we’re not always faithful to Jesus. 

But once we confess Christ we become part of His Church and we are bound to Him as a bride is to her groom. And Jesus wants more than the wedding day, He wants what every groom wants. Jesus wants to have a relationship with us, a relationship that is exclusive, a relationship that grows and flourishes.

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in Him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

Live For Now

That is stupid!

We have been offered an eternal future  in Jesus Christ. We have provided an eternal home in heaven. We have been promised an eternal hope. Jesus Christ came and lived a perfect life on earth to show us how we are to live. Jesus Christ died a gruesome death on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins. Jesus Christ has risen from the grave to bring us a new and everlasting life. Jesus Christ ascended into heaven to preparing a place for us.

"Live for Now"  

That is stupid!

I don’t want to live for now.   I want to live for eternity.

Know Jesus

In Philippians 3:10 the Apostle Paul writes his personal mission statement - the purpose of his life; "I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death"

Paul wants to know Jesus and become like Jesus. He wants to live like Jesus, love like Jesus, and suffer like Jesus.

Knowing Jesus is much different than knowing about Jesus. Many people know about Jesus but choose not to know Jesus. Knowing Jesus involves a cost - sometimes a big cost!

The Apostle Paul states that he wants to know Jesus. What about you, do you want to know Jesus or do you simply want to know about Jesus?